Painting a Neighborhood
If I say I live in a good neighborhood what do you see? What if I say I grew up in a bad neighborhood? Based on two simple words - good or bad - we draw deeply ingrained images that pervade our minds.
The first thing that most people ask when I say that I go to school in Chicago is, “Isn’t it dangerous there?” As the city with the highest number of homicides annually and an extensive amount of media coverage to document them, stereotypes of insecurity run high when it comes to Chicago. Sure, dangerous could be one word to describe an entire city, but no better than dirty could be used to describe all streets or clean could be used to describe all water.
Amidst shocking statistics that have led Chicago to earn stigmatizing labels such as “Chiraq” - a nickname that has not fallen comfortably on the ears of many native and adopted Chicagoans who call it “home” - the city has provided me with an illuminating view of how society can divisively separate “good” and “bad” neighborhoods in our minds and on the streets.
While the late night news is perverted with figments of “Black on Black crime” and repetitive strokes of police brutality, the neighborhoods that have been colored as “bad” are those that have been resource-deprived for years. Low paying jobs and high rates of unemployment have led to enclaves of poverty. Where there are high rates of crime, there are also high rates of unemployment trailing closely behind.
A report on Chicago neighborhoods shows that “the highest concentration of youth unemployment is in neighborhoods on the city's South and West sides, especially Fuller Park, Englewood, East Garfield Park and North Lawndale, each of which is more than 90 percent black.” Neighborhoods such as these are often viewed as dangerous, but less often seen as under-resourced.
However, when resources such as jobs are added to the community, crime rates decrease: “A public summer jobs program for high school students from disadvantaged neighborhoods in Chicago reduced violent crime arrests by 43 percent over a 16-month period, according to a new study from the University of Chicago Crime Lab and the University of Pennsylvania.” In Chicago, summer is marked by a spike in violence, mostly due to gang conflicts. Providing students with jobs is not only empowering, but also a means for creating safety and stability. Statistics such as these remind us that safety is marked by resource-rich communities.
What the media does not paint for us however, are the “good” aspects of each of Chicago’s 77 unique neighborhoods. We often overlook the truly rich work of community organizations, single mothers, educators, and more in neighborhoods rich with culture and spirit. For example, to address a lack of employment, Inspiration Kitchens - which are located in Uptown and East Garfield Park - have provided thousands of jobs to Chicagoans.
Nowhere in this picture are there police officers etched on street corners or in schools. In fact, the over criminalization of Black and brown people in under-resourced communities leads to a cycle that can be hard to break out of. Those with criminal records are even less likely to be able to obtain a job, keep housing, or apply for social welfare benefits. More resources lead to more stability, which is precisely the way to break such a malicious and detrimental cycle
Along these lines, safety means coloring security into all aspects of daily life - economically, educationally, mentally, and physically. Safety is having a job that pays a living wage, enough to support your family. Safety is being able to obtain a job after being released from jail. Safety is when youth have a job to go to during the summer when they are out of school. Safety is economic security.
Safety is diluting the watercolors of “bad” neighborhoods, “bad” schools, and “bad” people until they do not create an inaccurate blurred image our minds. Safety is meeting a Black or brown person in Chicago and not stereotyping them as products of the South and West sides. Safety is listening to the stories behind the people that call Chicago home rather than relying on the stories of those that coin the city “Chiraq.” Safety is recognizing that “Black on Black crime” is a direct result of failing institutions - all violence is state violence.
Until we deconstruct our idea of what “good” and “bad” looks like, we can’t begin to reconstruct what safety really is. All too often “bad” is equated with unsafe, or dangerous. In a society where we have created a dichotomy between “good” and “bad,” we must work to create our own ideas of what #SafetyIs. A neighborhood can only be as bright as the opportunities which it provides its residents. So, how would you paint safety in your mind?